Life As We Know It
by gillyandersons
Summary: Pepperony family fluff! Please read and review.
1. Chapter 1

**_This is just a little idea I had, if people like it I may add more chapters. I hope you do like it, please let me know what you think:) _**

"We going to see Momma now?" A little voice asked, tugging against Tony's hand.

"Yup" Tony smiled, scooping his four year old son up in his arms and hoisting him on his hip. "You excited to see her?"

The young boy, who was the image of his father, save his mother's ocean blue eyes, nodded eagerly. He had only been with Bruce over night, but he missed his parents. Especially his mother.

"Uh huh" Ethan beamed, nodding enthusiastically. "An' the babies"

"They're excited to see you too, buddy!" Tony smiled as they walked into the hospital and made their way up to Pepper's room, or private suite, which Tony had demanded she have. Much to Pepper and her doctors chagrin.

Ethan babbled happily about how much fun he had had whilst his Uncle Bruce and Uncle Rhodey had been watching him the night before, Tony listening intensely to his sons every word.

Pepper had gone into labour in the early hours of the morning, and as much as Tony screamed and shouted, bribed, pleaded and begged, the hospital wouldn't allow her to come in until her labour progressed. It wasn't until well into the afternoon that Tony couldn't take it any longer. His wife was in unimaginable amounts of pain, and no matter how far along she was, she was going to hospital. Whether the doctors liked it or not. After some more screaming and shouting from Tony, and apologies through cries of pain from Pepper, the hospital finally agreed to admit her. It wasn't until 4:42 AM the next morning that the twins were finally born, nearing 30 hours after they started to make an appearance.

"Okay, bud, just a few rules before we go in" Tony said, placing his mini-me on the floor outside the room. "Momma is very sore, and she will be for a while, so you have to be extra careful around her, okay?" Ethan nodded. He was four, but he was incredibly smart and already knew more than most kids twice his age. That's what Tony and Pepper's brilliant, ingenious minds mixed together created. "And you've got to be even more careful and quiet around the babies too"

"Okay, Daddy" Ethan grinned, too eager to see his mother after almost 24 hours apart. This was the first night of his life he'd spent away from his mother and Tony was surprised how well he took the separation.

Ethan slipped his tiny, chubby hand into his fathers again as they walked into the room. As excited as he was, he was also nervous too. He had been excited to be a big brother from the moment he found out, but he was also nervous as he knew just how fragile babies could be. He had spent enough time around Thor and Jane's two year old to know that.

Tony grinned as they walked into the room, feeling his son squeeze his hand a bit tighter and inch closer to his leg. His eyes immediately landed on his wife, who was currently sitting up in bed, cradling both of their newborns. Two little heads, covered in baby pink hats poked out of her arms.

Pepper looked up, her already giant smile growing as she saw her son. Ethan stopped dead in his tracks, and smiled nervously, his chubby hand coming up and waving. Tony turned and bent down so he was once again eye level with his son.

"You okay, Eth?" He asked, reading his sons adorable face like a book. Ethan's excitement and enthusiasm had now been replaced with a look of nervousness and fear. Ethan shrugged, his eyes fixed on his bright, Iron Man red Converse.

"I don't wanna hurt Momma" he said weekly, shrugging as he kept his eyes on his shoes.

"Oh, hey, buddy!" Tony sighed, wrapping his arm around his son and bringing him in closer to his body. "You won't hurt her, you just can't jump on her or anything. That's all"

"You pwomise?" Ethan asked, looking up at his father. His large bright blue eyes full of insecurity.

"I promise" Pepper spoke for Tony, reassuring her baby boy. Her heart was breaking at the thought her son was too scared to touch her. She had been far too excited to see him all day. She missed him more than she ever thought possible, and throughout the past 24 hours, he hadn't been far from her mind. She hadn't been able to sleep in the two hours since Tony had reluctantly left her side to pick their eldest child up, her excitement to see him far outweighing her exhaustion of a 28 hour labour without any drugs.

"You do?" Ethan asked, addressing his mother.

Pepper nodded, her facial features softening as her sons face started to soften and light up.

"Can Momma have a hug?" She asked and Ethan looked towards his father unsure. Tony smiled broadly and nodded before helping his son up onto the bed.

Pepper held out one arm for her son, which the four year old gladly accepted. Carefully clambering up the bed and snuggling into his mother's side. Pepper squeezed him hard, ignoring the searing pains of protest coming from her abdomen.

"Ooohhh, I missed you so much, little guy!" Pepper said, kissing the top of her son's head.

"I missed you too, Momma!" Ethan said, his words reverberating into his mother's side, as he nuzzled his head further into her. His mothers scent and touch soothing him and engulfing him lovingly, the way only a mother could.

After a few moments, Ethan finally looked up.

"They the babies?" He asked, pointing to the two tiny, sleeping things in his mother's other arm.

"Yup" Pepper smiled proudly as Ethan shifted slightly to get a better look, his eyes growing wide and a smile tugging at the corner of his lips. He looked so much like his father in that moment, whenever Tony laid eyes on one of his new toys or creations for the first time. "You want to hold them?"

Ethan nodded, his eyes widening in anticipation, already at ease with the situation.

"Okay then, bud" Tony said, "go sit on the chair" he added, pointing towards the plush green sofa at the opposite end of the room.

"Okay" Ethan obliged as Tony helped him down from the bed, running as fast as his tiny legs could carry him.

"You've got to be super careful, remember?" Tony said as he took one of the babies from Pepper's arms.

"I will, I pwomise" Ethan said as he held out his arms.

"Ethan, meet Paige" Tony smiled, placing his daughter in his sons arms, making sure the boy had proper hold of her. "Paige, meet your big brother, Ethan"

"Hello, Paige" Ethan said softly, looking down at the tiny bundle in his arms with nothing but love and admiration.

"And this..." Tony said, sitting down on the sofa next to Ethan, placing his other daughter half in his son's arms, half in his. "...is Addie"

"Hello Addie" Ethan greeted, and Pepper's eyes suddenly filled with tears. "You guys are heavy, huh? No wonder Momma was so fat!"

Tony tried not to fall into a fit of laughter at his sons last comment. It was hilarious, and he hoped Pepper would see it that way too. He had made the drastic mistake of telling her she'd stretched his favourite t-shirt, and after she'd finished smacking the crap out of him, she cried for three hours straight.

Luckily for their son, Pepper did take it well, and was trying, and failing to hide her giggles as her cheeks burnt a crimson colour.

Ethan gently kissed the heads of his new baby sisters, who were now both awake and looking up at him with giant blue eyes. He noted that there were little tufts of red hair sticking out from beneath their hats and grinned.

"They look like Momma"

"They do, don't they, buddy?" Tony agreed, hoping that they grew up to be just like their mother: incredibly smart as well as unbelievably beautiful.

"Uh huh. They're real pretty" Ethan nodded, his eyes transfixed on his two newborn baby sisters. "I'm gonna be the bestest big brother ever!"

Both Tony and Pepper's hearts swelled and a wave of warmth spread through their bodies at this. They had been nervous at first as to how Ethan would react. He had been so used to being the only one and he spent more time around his parents than the average kids did. But Ethan had been over the moon at the thought of becoming a big brother, and couldn't wait to 'have somebody to look after like Daddy looks after the world'.

"You are?" Pepper asked, despite knowing full well he would be.

"Yup! I'm gonna teach them sums and how to fight and I'm gonna play with them and love them all day every day -look, Paige is making Momma's angry face!" Ethan giggled before his face scrunched up in disgust. "Ewwwww. They might look pretty like Momma but they're stinky like Daddy!"

Tony and Pepper chuckled as Tony lifted Addie from his sons arms, placing her in her cot before lifting Paige and taking her to the changing table. Once Ethan was free, Pepper patted the empty space beside her bed. Ethan grinned and took off in an excited run.

"So, do you like your new sisters?" Pepper asked, snuggling down closer to her son.

Ethan nodded against her side.

"Even if they're stinky?" Tony asked, placing a freshly changed Paige in her cot.

"You're stinky and we still love you" Ethan replied and Pepper smiled proudly.

"Touche, lil Bud" Tony chuckled, sitting on the other side of the bed, wrapping his arm around his wife's shoulder.

Pepper sighed happily as she relaxed into her husband, her head resting on his shoulder and her fingers lost in her sons thick, silky locks.

The three of them sat in Pepper's bed in a comfortable silence, all revelling in the moment. Soaking it up and making the most of it, knowing it was probably the last time they'd ever get to do it.

Ethan fell asleep first, never able to resist the temptation of sleep when he snuggled his mother and she stroked his hair. His soft snores filled the room, melding with Paige and Addie's', making the most beautiful melody either Tony or Pepper had ever had the privilege of hearing.

"He's out like a light" Pepper commented, her own voice thick and sleepy.

"I'm not surprised" Tony commented. "Apparently, he had quite the night with Bruce and Rhodey!"

"He did?" Pepper asked.

"All he could talk about on the drive here was how 'Unc' Bruce and Unc' Rhodey let him stay up late eating candy and watching movies'" Tony groaned slightly, but thankful that HE wasn't the one who had to deal with a hyped up four year old.

"Rather them than us!" Pepper chuckled, echoing her husband's words.

"That's what I was thinking" he grinned, kissing his wife's temple. "Get some sleep, babe" he said, but his words had already fallen on deaf ears.

Pepper's breathing became deeper and heavier and within a few moments, Tony realised she was fast asleep.

He smiled as he listened to his family all sleeping and snoring softly. In his whole life, he had never even dreamed of settling down. Let alone getting married and having kids. But upon realising he was in love with Pepper, that was all he wanted. Of course, it took him years to even voice the idea of marriage. And even then, even after actually getting married, he and Pepper had never really discussed the idea of kids: they both wanted them, but they'd never discussed it, both assuming the other didn't really want them.

It took Pepper freaking out over a positive pregnancy test and running away to her parents for them to voice their desire for children.

All throughout the pregnancy, Pepper had remained calm and collected, where Tony freaked out and overreacted about most things. He had been so worked up about not wanting to be like his own father, that he'd gotten himself into a frenzy. She'd gone into labour three weeks early, and that sent Tony into a total freak out. He had scooped her up and flew her to the closest hospital, smashing through the helipad on the roof and screaming at every doctor and nurse. It was only when the doctors had threatened to have security escort him that he started thinking clearly... Or as clearly as a first time father who's wife was currently screaming out in agony could think.

It was completely different though, once Ethan was actually born. Tony, surprisingly took to fatherhood quickly and easily. Everything just came to him naturally whereas Pepper was the one who had struggled. Which was odd, as she had basically been Tony's surrogate mother for the past 15 years. She was a phenomenal mother, but things didn't come as naturally to her as they did to Tony. Not at first anyway. It took a lot of crying and a lot of pep talks for Pepper to realise that, even though it didn't feel like it, she was actually doing an amazing job.

Not that you would ever be able to tell that now, as Pepper was super-mom. Literally.

He liked it though, the domesticity. He liked having a relatively normal life when he wasn't out on missions. Which, after Pepper first fell pregnant, were usually designated to somebody without a wife and kids. There was nothing he loved more than being a husband and a father. He thought he had been living the life when he was just a millionaire playboy, but that paled drastically in comparison to the life of a loving father and husband.

Even when Pepper threatened to castrate him in his sleep if he EVER let Ethan go inside the Iron Baby suit they'd together made again.

Pepper stirred slightly in her sleep, snuggling closer into Tony's side. Tony shifted slightly, getting more comfortable and making sure Pepper was too. Some people might say she was his complete opposite, but that's what Tony loved the most about her. She completed what he was not. It amazed him how he loved her more and more every day, just when he didn't think it was even remotely possible to love her even more, he did. She was his everything and from the moment she had come into his life, she had been his Northern Star. Shining brightly in his darkest moments and always guiding him home safely. Back to her.

She was his home. His happiness. His everything.

And, in this moment, Tony had never been happier or prouder, and he had Pepper to thank for that.


	2. Chapter 2

Tony chased after a stark naked Addie and wondered how a barely two year old girl could outrun him.

Ethan had been tasked with the 'big boy job' of keeping an eye on Paige.

Pepper was out of town on business, so it was down to Tony and Ethan to bath the twins.

Which, was harder than it sounded.

Addie giggled as she continued to outrun her father, her chubby bum cheeks out on display for the whole world to see. As she ran, her red curls bounced around her face.  
Tony grunted as he stumped his toe on a bright plastic toy. There was a flash of red as Addie ran past him once again, squealing and giggling in delight as she did.

As Tony once again took off after the toddler, there was a loud sloshing noise, followed by the muffled sound of "uh ohhh" coming from the bathroom. Tony turned around to see Ethan, who's t-shirt was soaking wet and his dark brown hair sticking to his head.

"Paige got away, Daddy!" Ethan sighed, looking both frustrated and scared.

"Its okay, buddy" Tony smiled. Even his six year old had managed to keep one of the twins in the bathtub longer than he had. "You go that way" Tony pointed to the way Ethan had just come from. "And I'll go the other way"

"Okay"

And with that, the Stark boys once again took off in search for the twins.

As Tony continued to search his home, he a) cursed himself for having such a huge home, and b) wondered how the hell Pepper managed to do this on a daily basis. She had only been gone two days, and the house looked as though there had been a robbery in the middle of an Earthquake. Tony had given up tidying up after the kids after about four hours of Pepper leaving.

He was coming to seriously regret that decision.

"Addie! Paige!" Tony shouted, starting to grow angry. "Come back here! This isn't funny any more!"

Tony heard the giggles multiply and groaned once again as he realised the twins had now joined forces.

"If you come here and have a bath, I'll let you stay up late and have ice cream for breakfast" Tony shouted once again, finally admitting defeat and bargaining with his evil daughters.

"You'll do no such thing!" Pepper's voice clipped, causing Tony's head to snap around.

She wasn't due back till tomorrow night, but Tony had never been happier to see his wife.

As he took off down the stairs, he noticed chubby hands wrapped around Pepper's leg and red frizzy ringlets in a bold contrast with Pepper's crisp, white dress.

Pepper tried to suppress a chuckle as she realised what was going on. Her daughters were clinging to her legs, buck naked and giggling. Tony looked frustrated and had resulted in bargaining and bribery.

"Did you two run away from your Daddy again!?" Pepper asked, her voice hard and stern.

"No!" Paige shook her head as Addie giggled.

"What did I tell you two before I left?" Pepper asked again, this time bending down so she was eye level with the toddlers.

Tony always wondered how she managed to do that in a figure hugging dress and, what he liked to call, 'fuck me now' heals.

"To be good?" Addie answered.

"Exactly" Pepper said, raising her eyebrow. "And by the looks of it, you're being very, very naughty"

"We not norty!" Addie demanded, stamping her foot on the hard wood floor as if to emphasise her point.

"Well then why were you running around the house naked?"

"'Cus Daddy be norty!" Paige grinned cheekily.

"Yeah. He try to put us in da tub!"

"That's because it's your bath time" Tony replied matter of factly.

"No!" Both the twins chorused in unison.

"Yes!" Pepper and Tony echoed their daughters' words. "Or else no bedtime story tonight" Pepper warned, grinning once she realised she had won that battle. "Now, go upstairs with Daddy and I'll be up in a minute" Pepper pointed towards the stairs.

As the twins solemnly clambered up the stairs towards the bathroom, Pepper beamed broadly.

"Hi"

"Hi, baby" Tony's smile mirrored his wife's. "I missed you" he pouted before kissing her on the lips.

"I missed you too" Pepper sighed as she wrapped her arms around Tony's neck. "The conference ended early so I got the first red eye out here"

As Tony pulled Pepper in for another kiss, Ethan appeared at the top of the stairs.

"I couldn't find them Dad, I'm so- Mom!" Ethan all but flew down the stairs once he noticed his mother.

Tony kissed Pepper on the cheek and went up to check on the twins as Ethan flew into his mother's legs, almost knocking her over.  
"I missed you too, sweetie" Pepper chuckled as Ethan squeezed her with all the strength he had.

After a few moments, Ethan released his vice-like grip on his mothers waist. Pepper kicked off her heals before grinning knowingly.

"I got you a present, while I was gone"

Ethan smiled, to be honest, he didn't really care much for his gift. He was just so happy Pepper was home.

They had phoned/skyped at least twice, maybe even three times a day but that wasn't the same as having each other there for real. Tony had always used the excuse 'the kids really miss you' when he called her, which was true, but it was mainly because he missed her.

"Thank you" Ethan smiled politely. "Did you have a nice trip?"

Both Pepper and Ethan made their way into the living room and onto the sofa. Pepper sat with her legs pulled underneath her as Ethan snuggled into her side.

They chatted happily, both recounting tails about the past couple of days. Pepper couldn't help but chuckle as her son told her stories of how the twins had basically run the household and had driven Tony insane. Her fingers got lost in her sons mop of dark hair, his hair silky and soft.

"...And then Daddy said that the twins we're like Uncle Thor on steroids!"

As Pepper listened intently to her sons every word, she would hear her husband shriek and groan upstairs as the twins giggled and the water undoubtedly sloshed over the sides of the tub. She heard a muffled shout, followed by footsteps and could only assume one of the twins had gotten free again.

Ethan and Pepper were engrossed in the TV, watching an old episode of _Dr Who_ (Ethan's favourite show), when Tony reemerged with the twins. Their red hair was damp and looked as though Tony had done his best to towel dry it. They were dressed in their matching pink and white polka dot pyjamas and their lilac dressing gowns, their name embroidered in white cotton (a gift from Bruce last Christmas) and had their fluffy bunny slippers on.

They both clambered onto the sofa and their mother, showering her in hugs and kisses.

Tony however, was drenched from head to toe. His t-shirt clung to his body and clearly showed his muscles, Pepper grinned in appreciation.

"Looks like you guys gave Daddy a bath too" Pepper giggled.

"Uh huh!" Paige nodded.

"He was stinky!" Addie added.

"After chasing you two around for three days straight, I'm not surprised!"

Tony left to change into dry clothes before he returned, the twins now equally invested in the _Dr Who_ rerun as their mother and older brother. Ethan smiled as he acknowledged his father, shifting slightly so there was room for him on the sofa too.

A warm feeling spread through Pepper's chest as she felt Ethan shift onto Tony's lap and Tony snuggle into her side. God, she had missed this! Her family. The warm, fuzzy feeling she got when she was with them. They were her home, and she always had the peculiar feeling of homesickness whenever she was away from them, even for a few hours.

**_Any good? Feedback would greatly be appreciated hehe. Thanks. _**


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